Half Boyfriend
by Accidenta1
Summary: l::Under Construction::l Freddie was scared and confused. Shane was contradicting and withdrawing. Occurs during 2x01 “iSaw Him First” Slash Freddie/Shane
1. Chapter 1

"C'mon! You're telling me that you have no idea how to fix this thing??"

"I'm sorry! I'm just a dancer!"

"Then why in the world are you a technician for!"

Freddie was annoyed. He was tired, and he still needed to finish his homework, but instead he was in the basement of his apartment with a technician. Well the title technician was only a given, his skills did not qualify him as one at all.

Freddie's been helping the technician out with the rewiring of the circuit boards to the elevators so that when someone pushes the button for the elevator, the elevator would do as it's told and go to the designated floor, instead of letting the brakes along the wires go and releasing the elevator down below to the bottom floor. The broken lift had already been removed and a new one was currently being delivered.

Freddie was inside the shaft, the technician holding a flashlight up for him as he concentrated on the rewiring. There was no lighting in the

basement except for the lone flashlight in the technician's hands.

_A technician that doesn`t know how to fix things... That`s just great..._

As he lead a red wire from the wall and into the board, the light from the flash light slowly moved away, leaving Freddie in darkness.

He quickly turned around and found the technician gone.

"Hey!" he called out.

"I'm off for the day. Cya kid."

Freddie turned and started towards the leaving man.

"Wait! How am I suppose to-"

Suddenly Freddie could hear familiar voices echo their way down the shaft.

"Foul!"

"What foul!"

At first he didn't know who the voices belonged to, the echoes down the shaft sheering the familiar pitches differently, but he figured it out by

what they said.

"You intentionally sabotaged my moment!"

_Carly... Sam..._

_Both of them were still fighting over Shane...._

He walked back into the elevator shaft. The technician was already gone, and he was standing in complete darkness, staring up the chute.

"How could I intentionally sabotage-"

"He was totally about to kiss me!"

Freddie's eyes suddenly widened, reflecting the surprise he felt. He didn't care that he was in darkness or that the technician just decided to

leave him to do the work by himself. Something else had occupied his mind.

_Shane was going to kiss Carly??_

"Really?"

"-girls-"

"You know what you did!"

"No-no I know what the deal was!"

Freddie couldn't listen to the conversation overhead, his focus was distorted.

_Shane was going t-to... he was going to kiss.... CARLY?? But what about... what about..._

Even in his mind he couldn't find the words to say. Memories from the past week started to flash through his mind as he stared into the

darkness above him.

"GIRLS! I don't know what's up with you two but I've had enough of it!"

Freddie was brought back by the sound of the boy's voice. It was full of anger and irritation.

"I've seen girls get competitive over a guy-" the sound of the elevator shaft opening revealed a light, followed by a beep, as the once

muffled voices were now clear.

This made Freddie panic. Shane didn't know the elevator wasn't there!

"-before but you two are OUT of control! You girls call me when you learn to be a little more-- AAHHHH!"

"SHANE!!" Freddie's voice yelled out.

He had to act fast.

_Break his fall, break his fall, C'MON FREDDIE, BREAK HIS FALL._

He knew there was a spring bed somewhere in the basement. He'd seen it on his way in but he was in pitch darkness so how was he suppose to get it??

"-AAHHHHH!!--"

_Six floors. Ten feet each. Sixty feet. He's about 140 pounds.... So that's about 82,320 N... wait, no! that's potential energy. Dam it how fast is_

_he going?_

"-AAHHHHH!--"

_No, no no!_

Freddie could picture where the bed was in the basement but he knew he wouldn't make it in time, so he did the best thing he could do.

He stood there, in the middle of the elevator, holding his hands out, ready to catch Shane.

_I need the bed, I need the bed, I need the bed! He'll kill me if I try to catch him!!_

But his body stood there, in the dark, awaiting the falling body coming at him.

He couldn't help but picture the bed somehow moving into the shaft. He needed the bed! He needed the bed under Shane or they'll both die!

Freddie closed his eyes as tightly as he could, his body tensing up for the all knowing collision. He was so scared and focused on Shane's

voice that he didn't hear the dragging noise of a large object being pulled across the floor.

"---AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH-----"

The screaming suddenly stopped with a thump and Freddie couldn't feel anything in his arms.

But what surprised Freddie was the sound of springs being cushioned on.

"Ow..."

"Shane!"

Freddie bent down, frantically looking for his friend. He could feel that the large king sized bed he had seen earlier had some how made it's way into the elevator shaft, but that didn't matter to him right now.

Freddie's arms finally found Shane's body in the darkness.

"You're okay!"

"Yeah... I thought I was going to die..." The pain in his voice reflected a recovery from falling 6 stories.

Freddie rushed over and gave Shane the biggest hug he'd ever given anyone in his entire life. He held on to him as if, if he didn't the darkness would swallow him up and he'll never see Shane again.

"I thought you were going to die too!"

"Thanks for breaking my fall with this bed..."

Freddie almost didn't hear Shane's words, the relief of finding out that the boy in front of him was still living and breathing was overwhelming him. But he did hear them and now he wanted answers.

_How'd the bed..._

"The Technician!" Freddie shouted. "Oh, man. Where are you?"

Freddie turned his head in the darkness, searching for the man he had just insulted earlier, and was now grateful for.

"Technician?"

"Yeah," Freddie responded by spacing himself apart from Shane," he was down here with me fixing the elevator. He must of moved the bed for you! I was going to catch you but I couldn't see in the dark..."

"Thanks technician dude!" Shane called out.

No answer.

"Where'd he go?"

"I don't know but let's get out of here, k?"

He could feel his friend nod as he led the newcomer across the floor of the basement by the hand.

"It's kind of dark..."

"Don't worry about it, just follow me."

Freddie had a pretty good photographic memory now that he thought of it. He could picture where everything was, every box or piece of equipment, they were in his vision as if the darkness wasn't there anymore and he could clearly see everything in the light.

"My leg's sort of numb..." Freddie heard from behind him. "Is that a good thing?"

"No...." He turned around to face Shane in the dark.

"I can...I can feel my leg... it's... it's wet...."

"SHANE!"

Freddie felt his friend let go of his hand.

_He's going to fall again! Catch him Freddie, Catch him!!_

But all he could picture was the technician pushing the bed back under Shane, but that couldn't happen because the technician wasn't anywhere near them. Right?

Freddie suddenly heard Shane's body pillow against springs again, just like how he heard it from the elevator.

Freddie bent down to grab his friend but to his surprise he felt the king sized bed from earlier!

_Woa, wait. How did--_

Freddie quickly looked up after finally feeling Shane's body.

"Technician? Where are you! Say something if your there..."

No answer.

Freddie gulped and suddenly images of monsters playing tricks with him appeared in his mind. The clown from The Poltergeist being number one on his list.

He. Needed. Out. Now.

_Calm down... Calm down... they don't exist... they don't exist..._

Freddie tried to assure himself that nothing was there, just Shane.

Then how did the bed move again??

Maybe there were two beds down here, and maybe he accidentally walked around it, maybe his photographic memory wasn't that great and maybe he didn't notice the second bed, maybe... maybe...

"...Freddie?"

He's awake!

"Shane! Don't ever pass out like that again, okay?" Freddie said, his voice trembling a little.

He could hear a pained moan come from Shane as the springs on the bed uncoil indicating that a weight has been lifted.

"Yeah... sorry."

Freddie placed his hand down and felt a liquid along the side of Shane's leg.

"You're bleeding... We need to get you to a hospital. C'mon, lean on me."

Freddie suddenly realized the mistake he just made. When he said lean on him, he didn't mean all of his weight. But Shane did as he was told and now Freddie was supporting all 145 pounds on his shoulders as he helped the limping, taller boy towards the door. After a few steps the task of holding Shane up was no longer as easy as he pictured in his mind. He knew he was not going to be able to hold him up for much longer and he felt desperate. He wanted to get Shane out of there.

_Technician... if you're out there, hell, you too clown, just help me carry him please. He's slipping through my grip. I-I... I don't want to lose_

_him. Not again..._

Suddenly Freddie felt Shane's body become less of a burden on his muscles, some kind of force uprighting Shane up, and he could now walk with his back straight. This should of relieved him, but it didn't comfort him at all.

This down right scared every living body tissue left in his body right out of him.

His frame was suddenly tensed but he continued to walk towards the door.

"...ahh! Ow..!" Shane let out a pained sob with every step he took.

"Don't worry, we're almost there." Freddie assured Shane, even though his voice was shaking.

"Wow, do you work out? How the heck are you supporting my fat ass?" Shane was talking with an injured expression in his voice and Freddie heard it.

"You're ass isn't fat... and yeah... I have."

Freddie could feel the smile forming on Shane's face which lifted the stress in his muscles and the worries of the clowns and monsters.

"My ass is fat... and I say you show me how your getting this strong. Damn boy, you're not even working up a sweat, you're breathing is still even..." Shane said, his own breathing quickening.

Freddie could feel the skin on his face heat up as he reached out his hand to turn the knob of the door.

Suddenly a blinding light shined on their faces.

"YES! THE LIGHT!!"

"Whoot..."

Shane turned to Freddie and realized the color difference in his face.

"Are you...Are you blushing??"

Freddie quickly turned away from his friend, his face turning a deeper scarlet then it already has.

"N-No..."

"I think you are."

"No... No I am not."

"Yes, Yes you are."

"No, no I am not!"

"SHANE!!"

Freddie turned his head to face the voices down the hall and saw Carly and Sam run up to him. Well... run up to Shane.

"SHANE!!"

"ARE YOU ALRIGHT??"

"YOU'RE LEG!"

"OH MY GOD!! IT'S BLEEDING!!"

Both Carly and Sam pulled out their phones to dial 911 and began asking for an ambulance without helping Freddie as Shane's body grew heavier with each passing second.

Freddie realized that the force holding Shane up had disappeared once his concentration on the clowns and invisible technicians was lost.

_I am NEVER watching The Poltergeist __EVER again..._

"Freddie..."

Freddie quickly turned towards his friend despite the weight on his shoulders.

"Yeah, Shane? Is it your leg again?"

Freddie looked down at the leg with a concerned look. It was still bleeding.

"No... I just had to tell you..." He closed his eyes and he bowed his head.

Freddie was now looking back up at the boy.

"You _were_ blushing..."

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	2. Chapter 2

"Freddie, honey! Wake up!!"

He could hear his mother's calls from behind his door. She had said that she would be more courteous to his privacy, but he could tell how

hard it was for her to be able to stand behind that door and not be able to go in.

He looked to the clock, hearing the alarm still going off, and saw that it read 5:30.

If I don't get up she'll be through that door before that thing reads 5:31....

"Okay mom! I'm getting up!"

He made as much noise as he could so as to tell his mother he was getting off his bed.

His socked feet dragged his body across the floor as he made it to the bathroom.

He stared into the mirror as the events from a couple of nights ago lingered in his head.

How did the bed get to where I wanted it to be without anyone there, assuming that there really wasn't a killer clown with long striped arms or

a technician that didn't make any sound?

He changed his thoughts back to Shane.

Shane was going to have to stay in the hospital for a while after discovering that his right leg was broken. The doctors still don't believe that

the bed was able to cushion the fall from 6 stories up and not do anymore then break a leg, even if it was a king sized bed. Freddie couldn't

help but agree with them, but if he voiced it out loud then they would call him, Shane, Carly, and Sam all liars and demand the real reason

Shane broke his leg.

They have been taking daily visits to see Shane in the hospital, bringing him flowers, gifts, and a bear from Freddie that he had found in a gift

shop he found on his way there. It ended up in the trash can after Sam had seen it. Sam was the one who brought in food for Shane to eat,

knowing that the hospital food sucked.

His mind re-winded back to the hospital.

"It's a chili filled sub with a side of chili, and that there is spaghetti but instead of tomato sauce or meatballs it has chili. Oh! And this is-"

"Does it involve chili in it?" Carly asked with a blank face.

Sam looked down and started to tip her leg up against her toes.

"...um. Yeah."

"Why does everything have chili in it?" Carly asked.

"Why does it matter? You have a problem with chili?" Sam shot back, putting her hands on her waist.

"No.. it's just that Chili could make him use the bathroom a lot and if he`s having a hard time going back and forth from the bathroom and his

bed it could be troublesome."

Carly was referring to the cast on Shane's shin. The bleeding from the night of the accident didn't come from the broken bone but it came from

Shane's thigh, and probably happened on the way down the shaft from a loose wire or something. It still needed some pain relievers to numb it

though.

"Who the heck says troublesome anymore? That's like saying via." Sam yelled annoyingly, throwing her hands up in the air.

"You used to love saying via all the time!" Carly exclaimed.

"Well... that's before I knew what it meant...!"

"What? By way of, by means of? How would that-"

"No! That-that it meant talking to you ever ever again!"

"Oh, really? W-Well.... I didn't want to talk to you anymore anyways!"

"Fine!"

"FINE!"

And with that they both stalked out of the room, leaving Freddie alone with Shane.

Freddie looked from the door and back to Shane shaking his head.

"Well... that was-"

The door opened again and Sam walked back in.

She slowly walked over to the chili sub, looking down.

She grabbed it, muttering something about it being her lunch, and left after bowing her head out the door.

"How come you didn't stop them this time?" Freddie asked as soon as the door closed.

"I don't know... I didn't feel like I need to anymore. They fight over me ALL the time!"

"..yeah." Freddie said looking away.

"It's so annoying! I mean who would want this fat ass anyways?"

"Your ass. Is. Not. Fat! Ugh, how many times do I have to say that?"

"One more time while I eat this chili."

Freddie looked back up and found his friend eating from the bowl that Sam had left behind.

He walked over and brought a chair next to his bed and the table with all of the chili-filled food.

"Your... ass... is... not... fat."

Shane smiled with a mouth full of chili.

"-ou, shou- try som- its -ood." Shane said, chili rummaging through his mouth as he tried to form words.

Freddie laughed.

"-what?" He asked smiling.

Shane took a large gulp before stating, "You should try some, it's good!"

He leaned off his bed, grabbed the last container of chili and handed it to Freddie.

Freddie warily looked down at the container before sighing. He pulled off the lid and found the spaghetti chili that Sam was talking about earlier. He reluctantly took a fork and started to pick at the

noodles and chili.

Freddie knew that Sam was now back working at Chili My Bowl after finding out how much money she made everyday and the amount of free

chili she could eat, but he wondered where Sam got the noodles for the spaghetti.

"You think there's poison or something in them?" Shane called out from the bed.

"No... I know that the chili's fine... but I'm worried about the noodles..." Freddie said still looking down at the food in his lap.

"They're just noodles!"

"But they could be like... cooked in toilet water, or maybe she left the lid open and bugs were able to get in it. or... or-"

Shane started to laugh which caused Freddie to look up.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"No, tell me!"

"I don't want to."

"Why not??"

"I just don't." Shane's intentions was good-hearted but Freddie couldn't see that. Something started to fog his reasoning.

_Just tell me!!!_

"Ughhhh!"

Freddie angrily threw the bowl of chili across the room. Half of him hoped that the chili would collide and splatter against the wall, and the other half of him hoped that it all landed in the trash can. But the trash can was in a complete 20 degrees different path then where Freddie was throwing it so he knew that it wouldn't happen. His other half didn't stop hoping as his reluctant side watched.

He turned around before the chili ever made to it's destination.

A second passed and the sounds of something going into a bag could be heard behind him.

"Woa... Nice shot."

Freddie turned around and there wasn't any explosion, no chili on the ground, no noodles stuck on the walls, just the clean white hospital wall.

He didn't really care about what just happened because he was still angry and he decided to concentrate on the anger first.

"Why did you almost kiss Carly??"

Shane's smile from the shot faded as he turned his head to avoid Freddie's glare.

"What do you mean?"

"You know _exactly_ what I mean!"

"Well... maybe it's because I wanted to kiss her..."

"Really?"

"Yeah!"

"So what ever that thing was at AV club was, it was.... It was just acting or something?" Freddie's voice got caught up in his throat as he tried to maintain his glare on Shane. His face was failing him and he didn't blame it.

"No... it was real... it's just that..." Shane couldn't look Freddie in the face as his eyes frantically searched for somewhere else in the room he can look at.

"It's just what??"

After getting no response Freddie left his seat and walked out of the room. He heard Shane call out his name but he didn't stop. He just turned his walk into a run.

"FREDDIE!! You've been changing for 30 minutes already!! If you don't hurry you can't eat breakfast!"

His mother's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. He saw that the faucet water was running and making white noise within the bathroom.

He realized that his palms were sweating and his face felt cold, but when he brought his hand up to check, his skin was warm.

When Freddie looked up at the mirror he saw himself in pieces, his face cracked and aligned differently then they should.

His mirror had a crater within it's center and he didn't understand why. He looked at his fists after thinking that maybe he'd punched the glass without knowing it, but his knuckles were clear from any blood or shards.

How the...

His logical reasoning soon disappeared as he couldn't figure out how this could of happened. It was fine before he spaced out, but now it

wasn't? His hands could of hit it, and if he had hit it with his head he would of seen white glares blocking his vision and maybe even blacked out.

"FREDDIE!! YOU HAVE THIRTY SECONDS BEFORE I'M GOING IN THERE!!"

Freddie sighed as he answered a "I'm coming!!!" to his mother. He turned out of the bathroom and went over to his closet, trying to get rid of

the images from the past week.

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	3. Chapter 3

"Shane's coming back to school today!!" Carly explained to Freddie excitedly once she saw him come through the doors of Ridgeway High

school. She noticed the no response look, and his downy mood before she realized something was up with him.

"Freddie? Why do you look like an elephant sat on your puppy?"

Nothing.

Dang, that usually makes him laugh.

"Freddie! Hey! You there?"

She decided to slap him in the face, and got a flurry response from Freddie.

"Ah! What??"

"Are you ok?" She asked once he stopped moving.

"What do you mean?"

Carly sighed.

"You look like something's bothering you."

Freddie answered by walking faster ahead of Carly, distancing him from his friend.

"Wait! Freddie."

She grabbed his shoulders to turn him around, but he just pulled away and continued walking away.

If you think that I'm just going to let you leave, think again.

Carly ran up in front of him and stood as a barricade with her hands on her hips.

"Freddie! I'm not moving till you tell me what's the matter."

Freddie merely turned around and started to walk in the other direction.

"Uggh!! Freddie!"

She ran over and stood in front of him, but she just turned to avoid Carly.

"Freddie! You. Are. Talking. NOW!" Carly was pulling on Freddie's arm as she said the sentence.

Her attempts were ignored as Freddie continued to try to walk away despite the girl hanging off his arm.

"Talk. To. Me! Freddie!"

She saw his free hand turn to push her off and she was sent a couple feet backwards and landed on her back. Her eyes widened.

His hand didn't even hit me... How'd I end up on my back...

She felt something had pushed her backwards but it wasn't the hand... It didn't feel like a hand at all.

"Sam! Leave me alone!"

"Wait! Let me at least take your bag!"

Her attention immediately changed as she got up and started over to Shane, after seeing Sam bothering her future boyfriend.

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	4. Chapter 4

... Carly.

Freddie continued his walk around the school, knowing that the school bell wouldn't ring for another ten minutes.

I didn't even touch her, she must have been faking her fall like that.

The hallways were filled with talking students but he couldn't concentrate.

But why did her fall scream sound real?? She's got to be a good actor or something...

Freddie was so deep in thought that he hadn't realize where he was walking.

He scanned his surroundings and his eyes laid on a door. It had the sign AV club next to it but Freddie didn't even look at it before his face

reflected panic.

How'd I get here??

He turned to leave as quickly as he could. The once suppressed memories were surfacing again and he couldn't stop them. They weren't going

to leave his mind and it didn't look like they wanted to anyways. Freddie found that a part of him didn't want the memories to leave either.

"Nerd!"

Freddie felt his body collide with the floor, the equipment in his hands falling out and scattering across the floor.

He heard laughter come from behind him as he hastily reached out and placed everything back in his hands.

His face turned red in embarrassment as he stood back up and quickly started to walk away.

He felt something push against his back and the force landed him on the ground again, this time his face skidded across the floor. He tried to

hold on to the things in his hands tighter this time, but a camera was still able to make it's way out of his grasp.

Panic filled his mind as he heard footsteps come closer towards him. He closed his eyes.

Suddenly he heard a body slam against a locker and someone's pained voice.

"Leave him the fuck alone or we'll have to see how much blood I can get from slamming your head into the wall!"

Freddie opened his eyes in relief after recognizing the voice.

Shane.

He turned around and saw Shane slam the guy's head into the locker after receiving no response from his captive.

The guy screamed at the impact and immediately apologized to the boy pinning his face to the grills of the locker.

"I'm sorry! I'm Sorry!!"

"Now say it to my friend here!" Shane forced the guy onto his knees in front of Freddie.

"I-I'm sorry!"

Freddie smiled before Shane let the guy go. He sprinted down the hall and around the corner.

"Hey, you okay?" Freddie looked up and realized that he was still lying on the floor.

He saw Shane walk over to him and offered him a hand.

"Don't listen to those guys okay?" He said as Freddie took his hand and he helped pull him up.

Freddie was still holding onto the equipment in his other arm. He hoped nothing was broken.

Shane saw a lone camera on the floor and went to pick it up. He returned and motioned towards the boy in front of him.

"C'mon, we have to get to the AV club before it starts!"

Freddie laughed. "We're the only ones in the AV club... It can't really start with out it's only members."

"No... I'm pretty sure we're not the only ones in the club. We still have those ghosts remember?" Both of them were now smiling as they

continued to walk down the hallways.

Freddie laughed. Shane was referring to the times when some of the equipment like a camera or a something disappeared after they were done

using it and it some how ended up being put away where they needed it to go without either of them touching it.

Freddie just thought it was Shane doing it and he would just act oblivious when they found out about the equipment.

"The ghosts didn't get their parents to sign the permission slip, so technically they aren't part of the AV club."

"But their parents probably moved on! It's not their fault... You're being a ghoscist!" Shane exclaimed.

Freddie just smiled as he shook his head.

"Benson! BENSON!! Pay attention!!"

He heard a loud slam come from his desk as his head jerked up, pulling him out of his thoughts. He looked up and saw his Algebra teacher

look at him upsettingly.

"This isn't like you Benson. I'm disappointed with you. Now answer the question on the board."

He looked at the board and found the lone equation on the board. His teacher stalked off towards the front of the class.

X squared minus 4 x minus 4....

"Nine?"

There was a loud gasp from his teacher before she turned around to face Freddie.

"That's.... That's wrong Benson... Oh god... What is the world coming to when the star pupils start failing in their classes..."

She shook her head before asking another student for the answer to the question.

Freddie's thoughts were distracting him from reality. He knew that he could of answered the question right, but he didn't.

He sighed as his thoughts soon took his reality from him again.

"How was the date?" Freddie was hesitantly awaiting the right time to ask Shane about the date all day but he couldn't find any time as the

right time. So he decided to straight out ask him.

They were in the AV room working on their new project that they were going to show on iCarly this week. Shane continued working on

installing the component parts for the magnet as he answered the question.

"It was.... Alright, I guess."

"You guess?"

"Well, we just went to the smoothie place and bought some smoothies. She asked to feel my arm." Shane said simply.

"Carly or Sam today?"

"It was Carly first then Sam after."

"Wait, so you took them both on a date? Did they agree with that?" Freddie's voice didn't do a good job hiding his surprise.

"I don't know... It's just confusing." Shane said before leaving the room to get another plate of metal from the back room.

Those two... they're still fighting over him. Jeez.

Shane came back holding a round plate that they had made the other day and was now screwing it into their machine.

Freddie watched Shane's face and saw an emotion in his face that he has never seen his friend show before.

Regret.

He continued to work on the electrical system of the integrated circuitry as he eyed him closely.

Shouldn't he be at least a bit happy for going out with Carly AND Sam?

"Hey, you alright?" Freddie asked finally after he couldn't take the silence any longer.

"Yeah, why?" Shane said, finishing his attachment of the right side of the plate.

"Nothing it's just... um. Well-I mean... Did you want to go on those dates?"

He didn't mean to say it but it was bugging him.

Shane's head shot up to look at the other boy before he looked back at the machine.

"...sure."

"So... you did want to go on those dates." Freddie said sadly as he went back to the wires in his hands.

He heard Shane sigh before talking again.

"I mean... It was nice and all but... I just... I..."

Freddie's attention was brought back to his friend.

"I just don't like it when girls compete over me. It just looks like their skanks or like those people from Mean Girls. It's just not my type of

girl."

"Who are the Mean Girls?" Freddie asked confusingly. There were mean girls at their school?

"No.. no. I mean- I didn't mean it like... ugh." Shane dropped the screwdriver he was hold and was rubbing his forehead with his hand.

Freddie looked concerning at the boy.

"What?"

"I can't... I..." He was now shaking his head. This made Freddie look even more worried at his friend.

"Shane. What's wrong?"

"I didn't feel anything at all when Carly touched my arms, or when Sam called me cute or anything..."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know! I really, I just... I don't know Fred! I just don't know."

His friend's pained expression made Freddie's chest feel empty. What was making him hurt this badly??

"You have to tell me what's wrong!"

"I just did!"

"That you didn't feel anything when you were with Carly or Sam? You might just not like them or something that's all. Don't worry about it,

there's other girls out ther-"

"That's the thing!" Shane yelled through closed eyes. "I... I didn't want another girl or anything. All I could think of during the date was that I

could be here, with you making this thing, instead of with them. I-I think I`m... I think I'm gay."

The last word came out as small and weak as the appearance of the boy it came out of.

Freddie froze. He didn't know what to do now. What are you suppose to say to a friend that tells you they're gay??

He couldn't find the words so the next best thing he did was sit down next to his friend and hugged him.

Yes, he was taller then Freddie, more courageous then Freddie, the one who protected Freddie, and possibly the most collected guy on school,

but right now he was vulnerable and exposed. At that moment Freddie needed to be the courageous one, the more collected guy, the one person

who could be trusted to protect Shane.

The bell rung for the lunch, snapping Freddie out of his thoughts. He looked around and his eyes woke up in alarm. He realized that he had

just dozed off through an entire quiz and hadn't circled any of the answers.

He saw that the quiz was on a single paper, two sided as his class mates rose out of their seats to hand in their paper.

A, B, A, D, D, B, C, A, E, B, B, B, C,D

"Mr. Benson! Turn in your quiz!"

Freddie quickly circled the last answer before running up to his teacher's desk and handing in his quiz.

"Are you okay Benson? It's not like you to doze off during a quiz."

Where have he heard that before?

"It's nothing Mrs. Self." Freddie said before he turned to leave the class room.

He arrived at the cafeteria after the late bell for everyone else who had classes instead of lunch that period, rung. The place was already filled

with students, including the lunch lines which didn't seem to stop snaking around each other.

His stomach rumbled and reflected his disappointment on his face as he walked around the cafeteria.

Ugh...

He looked around and tried to find Carly or Sam but they were no where to be found. He didn't know that many people in the cafeteria that

didn't hate him, and he knew of only a few that would let him sit with them.

He continued to walk around the cafeteria till he heard someone call out his name. He turned around and met the face of a girl.

"Hey, Freddie! Want to sit with me? I don't have anyone to sit with, and it looks like you're looking for a seat too. So we should sit together!"

She flipped her brown hair away from her face as she awaiting his answer.

Why would Karie need some one to seat with? She's like the most awed at girl in the entire school. She could easily find a group of kids to sit

with her...

"Um... nah. I'm just walking around that's all." He turned and started walking again, leaving a disappointed looking Karie.

"I brought you some lunch if you're hungry!" she called out. Was that a trace of desperate in her voice?

"It's okay, I'm not that-"

"I have a Mr. Galeni's coconut cream pie!"

Freddie stopped in his tracks and raised an eyebrow on his face.

...dam she's good, I love pie... What ever though... I'm hungry anyways. I've never heard of this Galeni before though.

He turned around and nodded his head. Karie almost squealed in joy when she saw that Freddie was going with her.

"Yay! C'mon, we can sit over there!"

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	5. Chapter 5

"Was that someone squealing?" Shane hadn't heard a girl scream like that before, and it made him turn his head towards the sound.

"Yeah. It's probably Karie Kaster. She gets excited when she sees a cute boy or something." Carly said.

They were both sitting at a table in the middle of the sea of students. Sam was no where to be seen.

Shane turned and found Karie. But he didn't just find Karie, he found Freddie walking beside her and she was... she... She was holding his

hand!!

"What the hell?"

Carly responded to Shane by looking in the direction he was facing. She finally spotted Karie wrapping her arm around Freddie.

She turned around spat out a mouthful of soda at the sight, and she almost forgot that Shane was sitting across from her.

Almost being that she realized she just spat orange soda all over her future boyfriend.

"Oh, my god! I'm so sorry Shane, I'm-" but before she could do anything to apologize, Shane got up out of his seat, placed his crutches under his armpits and began limping towards Freddie's and Karie's table.

"Shane! Where are you- Wait!" She ran around the table to grab Shane's forgotten bag under his seat. She bent down, grabbed it, and when

she returned up her face ran into familiar blonde curls.

"Sam! What a... what a surprise to find you here-"

"I bet it's a surprise! Guess where I've been for the entire day?? In the principal's office! Because they found out about Mrs. Self's desk

being unscrewed, and some one tipped if off that it was me!"

"You don't think that I... that I-"

"Like gravy I think that it was you Carly Shay!!"

The two continued arguing as Shane staggered towards the table that Freddie and Karie was sitting at.

He saw that Karie had taken out a pie and was giving Freddie a slice of it. He took it warily and began eating it. His face lit up as the cream

filled his mouth.

"Wow! This is good!"

I could of given him a slice of pie too... if it wasn't for these crutches....

Shane looked attentively at the two at the table, his thoughts turning green with every step he took.

"Wow! This is good!" Freddie yelled, a bit too loud then he wanted to.

"Yeah! This is a Galeni pie! They're the best in the world!" Karie took a bite out of her own slice as she looked tentatively at the boy across

the table.

Freddie's mouth was so filled with pie that he didn't realize that he's already eaten the slice he was given.

"Wow that was... good!"

Karie laughed. "You said that already."

"Yeah I know, but... wow. That was sooo good!" Freddie tentatively looked at the rest of the pie.

"Um... Ca-Can I-"

"Oh, of course! I have plenty!" Karie opened the pie box again and started to place another slice of coconut cream pie onto Freddie's plate.

"...hey Freddie." Both of them turned around to see Shane on his crutches.

"AHHH!" Karie half screamed when she saw him.

Oh my god, oh my god! Two cute guys! Ahhh!!!

She couldn't help it, having this many cute guys at one table... it was a dream come true!

"Shane! Hey, Shane! Do you want some of Galeni's coconut cream pies? It's amazing!" She was already taking out an extra plate and

placing a portion of pie on the plate.

Shane took a seat on the small round table, to the left of Freddie and to the right of Karie. His glance was on Freddie, not ever lifting his gaze

on the boy.

Karie was about to place the plate of pie in front of Shane before she realized that maybe he wanted two slices like Freddie, so she quickly

placed another piece onto his plate.

"Here you go! Ahhh!!" She half screamed again, placing the pie in front of Shane.

She glanced at Freddie and noticed that he was staring at his pie, not looking up and taking meager bites, unlike before where he shoved the

whole pie in his mouth.

"Freddie are you alright?"

Suddenly she heard screaming from across the cafeteria.

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	6. Chapter 6

"Freddie are you alright?"

_No, I am NOT alright. I was here, enjoying a nice piece of... what was it? Galani? Of Galani's pie and Shane has to come over here. _

Why couldn't his thoughts be free of him for at least an hour of his life?

Suddenly Freddie heard screaming and immediately recognized the voices.

"AHHH!! HE'S MINE! HE WANTS ME!"

"NO HE DOES NOT!! UGGGHHHH!!"

_They. Are. STILL. Fighting over Shane??_

Freddie gazed up from his pie to look for the girls, but his glance was met by brown eyes. They never left his sight as he quickly looked back

down at his pie.

_It's okay... It's no biggie... I don't need to see if they're tearing off each other's heads or anything-_

"FINE! WE'LL GO OVER AND ASK HIM THEN!!"

_That's not good..._

This time when he looked up he saw that the brown eyes were widened. He had heard the yelling that time.

"I wonder who those girls are fighting over..." Karie asked curiously.

"The guy's going to be torn apart when they..." Karie started but she was interrupted. Carly and Sam had spotted Shane and started to stalk over to their table.

"SHANE!"

_Oh crap... oh crap..._

"SHANE! Tell Sam that you want to be my boyfriend, not hers!"

"No! He wants to be _my_ boyfriend! Tell her Shane!!"

Freddie looked at Shane and found him surrounded by sharks... man-eating, flesh-eating...girl... sharks.

"HEY! Leave him alone! He's here eating pie with me! Got it!? So why don't you two just scram!"

It was Karie and now she was standing up as well.

_Great... now we got pie-eating sharks._

Freddie stood back and watched the fireworks explode. He was looking at Shane who just kept his gaze on Freddie during the entire fight.

"And who do you think you are, Karie? Just because you have Gelani pies, does not mean that you are better then us!"

Sam fingered the pie in the open box and licked it. A half moan came from her mouth as she started nodding her head.

"Yeah... yeah, I think it does make her better then us." She began to use her fingers to eat the rest of the pie.

"Hey!! That's not for-" Karie began, turning towards Sam.

"You better back off my future boyfriend if you know what's good for you!" Karie turned back around, feeling more threatened by Carly then

Sam.

"Oh really?" Karie bent down and took out.... ANOTHER?? Pie box that Freddie assumed to be from Gelani. She opened it and quickly took the pie out.

"Don't yo-" Karie swung the pie into Carly's face, her hand still on the tin, as the remains of the cream started to fall down onto the floor.

"NOOOOO!! NOT THE PIE!! HOW COULD YOU!!" Sam yelled, trying to eat the remains of pie on the floor once she finished the one on the table.

Freddie didn't know who said it but someone yelled," FOOD FIGHT!!" and the entire cafeteria of students started to throw whatever they had on their plates at each other.

"NOOO!! NOT THE FOOD!! DON'T WASTE THE FOOD!!!!" Sam yelled at the crazy monstrosities who were throwing around perfectly good food that she could otherwise be eating.

Carly and Karie were now on the floor, pie remains scattered around their bodies, fighting with each other, one either half choking the other, or

one pulling the others hair, as food flew everywhere above them.

Freddie was now terrified, and hoped that none of the food reached his vicinity, looking feverishly around him.

"LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!" Freddie heard Shane say, breaking through his thoughts.

He felt a grip on his hand before he was pulled out of his seat. His eyes warily stayed open, trying to keep any food particles from hitting him. He saw Shane lead him towards the now dirty white exit doors, his hand never letting go.

His eyes widened as he realized that Shane only had one crutch supporting him.

"SHANE! WHERE'S YOUR OTHER CRUTCH!!" He had to yell in order for Shane to hear him over the riot in the cafeteria.

"IT'S OKAY.!" They finally reached the exit and Shane was already leading Freddie outside.

"C'mon!"

"No, wait! I'll get it for you."

"Freddie, no! C'mon lets go!" Shane felt the grip in his hands slip away and saw Freddie run back into the cafeteria. He looked helplessly from his spot. He wouldn't be able to run after him after losing his other supporting body. Hs attention was brought back to himself after he realized something.

His clothes were clean, not a single crumb of food could be found on his shirt or pants.

"How the..."

Shane looked back up and saw Freddie crawling over to the table they were sitting at. The cafeteria was still in a frenzy, food still being thrown from across the room.

He noticed a table of guys spotting Freddie's crouched form picking up a lone crutch lying on the ground.

One of them was pointing out Freddie to one of his friends and they were smiling. He recognized the guy pointing as the guy Shane had slammed into the locker several days ago.

"FREDDIE!" Shane knew Freddie wouldn't be able to hear him through the noises of the cafeteria. He hoped that they wouldn't throw anything hard at him.

Suddenly, as if in response, the guy from the day before and the rest of the boys at the table took out large 32 oz bottles of Gatorade.

Shane's eyes widened.

"FREDDIE WATCH OUT!!"

It was too late, they already started pelting the bottles towards his friend.

What surprised Shane was that the bottles would only get to about a foot away from Freddie before it seemed like they ricocheted off thin air and fell to the floor, it's contents spilling along the tiles.

From the point of view of the guys from the table, it would of looked like they missed, hit the wall, and the bottles bounced off onto the floor, but Shane was able to clearly see that the bottles hadn't even come into contact with anything.

The guys from the table soon gave up trying to hit Freddie, who was crawling across the floor and had his eyes to the ground as he made his way from the table to the exit.

Freddie got to Shane and timidly handed over the metallic object as he stepped outside the cafeteria.

Shane was still in shock at what he saw.

_Looks like I'm not the only one keeping secrets..._

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	7. Chapter 7

Freddie walked Shane away from the food fight and escorted him down the hallways.

_Man did Carly and Sam make a big mess over Shane..._

He looked over to his friend and found him staring at him, but not like how he was in the cafeteria. He had a puzzled and bewildered look in his eyes.

"What?" Freddie asked.

Shane shook his head out of his stupor and stared out in front of him.

"Um...Nothing it's nothing... it`s... um....."

Freddie watched as his friend sighed and bow his head.

_He's gay... what else could there-_

An alarm went off in Freddie's head as he watched his friend trouble himself in preparation of what he was about to say.

_He doesn't like me does he?_

Freddie was about to answer, but Shane stopped him. He took a deep breath and said the next words as fast as he could.

"DoyouhavetelekinesisorwhateverthatiscalledcauseifyoudothatwouldbereallyreallycoolandIwishedyoutoldmeearlier."

Shane exhaled the rest of the air in his lungs as he looked to his friend.

Wait what?

"Did you just ask me if I had like a power or something?" Freddie asked, his eyebrows raising up.

"Telekinesis, yes." Shane answered simply

_He thinks I have .... what?? So he wasn't going to tell me he likes me or anything like that?_

Freddie felt something from the news that his gay friend didn't like him, but he couldn't place it. Was it the clothes?

"Um... Freddie?"

_Oh, right. The telekinesis thing._

"I don't have telekinesis Shane..."

"But I saw you in the cafeteria! Those guys from the table were about to dent your skull in with those Gatorade bottles and none of them hit you! They would of hit you if it weren't for the fact that they just seemed to ricochet off an invisible wall in front of you and fall to the ground!"

_What the hell made him think that... How would- but... I-I... I don't remember anything like that happening in the cafeteria..._

"Ha.... You're funny Shane. You-"

"No, Freddie. Don't do that. Don't act like nothing happened. I shared you one of my secrets and now you have to tell me one of yours. I was completely honest with you! I couldn't handle with the secrecy anymore, but if you stand there.... If you stand there and you can't feel the guilt I felt when I kept that secret from you, and you can't reveal one of your secrets with me then... then..."

"Shane! I don't know anything about having powers or anything! If I did, don't you think I'd probably use it on people or something by now?" Freddie couldn't understand it! He wasn't keeping _any_ secrets from Shane!

"No, because you're the good guy. You are your mother's son, and he wouldn't do stuff like that."

"Shane c'mon. I'm telling you that I have no idea what you're talking about!"

Freddie saw Shane shake his head as he turned to leave, his crutches being hurriedly carried across the floors in short intervals as he made his way down the hall.

"Shane!" Freddie called out.

And just like that, they went from tensions between each other, back to friends, then back to having an uneasiness between each other.

_Why is he so stubborn!! I have no idea what he's talking about!! Ughh!!! Can't he see that!_

Freddie crouched down, pulling out the hairs on his scalp before standing up and running after his limp friend.

"Shane come back! Wait!"

Shane ignored every attempt to get his attention and just quickened his pace.

Freddie was ten yards from him when he remembered that there were stairs around the corner, and Shane was blindly speeding up into them.

"WAIT SHANE!"

He was a foot from him when Shane turned the corner.

"AHHH!!" Freddie watched in slow motion as his friend's right crutch descended down the unexpected step, causing him to lunge forward, his left crutch pushed out uselessly.

"SHANE!"

Freddie only had time to hold out his hand in the second it took Shane's body to trip over the ledge.

….a second past

And there were no fallen bodies, sounds of broken bones, or further yelling. Just complete and utter silence.

"HA! I knew it!" Came Shane's voice from midair. His body was inches from the cement, his face barely touching the pointed steps.

"How'd... how I..." Freddie looked shock in a baffled gaze. His arm was still outstretch, his fingers curled as if he was holding Shane in his hands.

Shane started to laugh in amusement as Freddie lowered his hand down which placed the boy's body onto the steps.

"Cool, it worked!" Freddie heard him say.

"What worked?"

"The whole life death situation thingy, well technically it was my life that was in danger but.... Yeah... you wouldn't of let me die right?"

Freddie was so confused that he just dropped into a sitting position.

_So I have telekinesis?? Oh man... Why haven't I noticed it before..._

Shane realized that Freddie was still in shock as he tried to stable himself on his good leg, his body leaning against the railing in the middle of the staircase.

He hopped, reached out to grab one of his crutches, then went over to pick up his other one.

_The technician! The clown! They weren't really there... it was me.... It was me the whole time... I saved Shane, not some fat man... I pulled Shane out of there, not some creepy scary clown..._

Shane watched his friend's troubled frame as he skid over to a sitting position next to him.

He was feeling like a jerk right now.

"I guess you really didn't know you could do that... I'm sorry Freddie... I didn't know..."

He turned towards his friend, expecting anger in his face, but all he saw were tears.

"I-I...I t-thought yo-you were going to...to... I thought...." Shane leaned in and hugged his friend, repeatedly saying that he was sorry over and over again.

"I'm sorry Freddie..."

"I thought you were going to die!! Shane... that's the second time I thought that I wouldn't be able to save you! You know how scared I was!!"

Shane could feel Freddie's figure shake uncontrollably now, and no matter how many times the words 'I'm Sorry' came out, it didn't seem to be enough to stop his friend from quivering under his arms.

_He was going to die... He was GOING TO DIE...._

Freddie could feel the heat from Shane's arms as they wrapped around him. How could he comprehend that he almost lost his best friend, the person who stood up for him and not make fun of him like Sam did, or let it happen like Carly had. How could he picture himself losing his friend, not once but twice! And both times he felt like he couldn't do anything to save him, but both times he did, and he didn't realize it.

A current passed by and he could feel a coldness on his face from being wet. He realized he was crying.

He was crying in Shane's arms and he didn't feel not even one once of shame or guilt at how close he was to him.

His grief and distress that emptied his heart inside and out, seemed to disappear as the warmth from Shane's body drifted into every dark crevice.

For that split moment he forgot about everything, what had happened, his friends, his life, how hard it was getting through that day without thinking about the past, and he let everything happen without his control.

Freddie looked up and saw how close he was to Shane. Shane turned his head and Freddie was able to study his eyes. They were a raw umber brown.

How Freddie knew that, he didn't know but what he did know was that some how his mouth was on Shane's.

_No...no..._

Shane knew that Freddie's lips was on his, but he couldn't believe it. His friend was straight... he was in love with Carly, wasn't he? What was he doing kissing him?

The thing was that no matter how many questions rushed through his mind, Shane didn't want to let go of him. He didn't want to stop, his body stressing under his orders, despite it's natural instinct to stop.

_This isn't a dream... no... Freddie's straight... He's vulnerable... He's drained... I put him up to this... He didn't want to kiss me... _

_He_

_didn't..._

Shane quickly removed his lips and turned his head forward. He felt the tears from Freddie's face had reached his own, and was now sliding down his cheeks. He didn't know how to react. He had to of been taking advantage of his friend. He was scared. It wasn't Freddie who kissed him.

He needed to go.

Shane warily grabbed his crutches and started to descend down the stairs, leaving Freddie on the steps.

"Shane?" He could hear the fear in his friend's voice. He turned his head back to the rising boy.

"You didn't want to do that... I know you didn't... We can just forget it happened." Shane took a couple of steps before turning back around.

"C'mon. We'll be late for class." The lunch bell hadn't rung yet but he knew that they shouldn't stay at that spot any longer.

Freddie followed next to the taller boy and they both made their way down the hall.

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	8. Chapter 8

"All participants in today's food fight are here by suspended from school for the next two days. Suspended students are to be at least 100 yards from school grounds until their suspensions are no longer in effect. If you are found within school grounds during your suspension then you shall receive detention for the rest of the week. That is all." stated Principal Franklin's voice from the intercom.

"You've got to be kidding me right!? Is he really going to suspend like the ENTIRE ninth grade??" Sam's voice yelled

out in annoyance.

She was in the hallways near the water fountain. She tediously was wiping off the cream from her hair, and in turn licking it off her hand.

"That's disgusting..." Sam heard come from a familiar female voice behind her

"Well... Karie," she said turning around," at least I don't try to lure guys in with _Galeni pies_. I prefer the old fashion way like with my looks!"

"Which you do not have." Karie stated.

"W-With my amazing personality-" Sam retaliated, trying to recover from the last statement.

"That could be compared to a rattle snake's, if it wasn't for them not being able to speak." She looked up and down Sam's form before closing her eyes and lifting her eyebrows.

"Maybe you should follow their example and stop talking for the day.." She turned around and got as far as two feet before her head was jerked backwards, her hair being pulled from her scalp by a strong grip.

"AHHH!!!"

"Yeah, that's right. What were you saying about my personality??" Sam tugged harder pulling the head in her hands backwards, sending Karie's body into the lockers behind her. Karie's head hit the lockers, hard before she fell onto the floor. Sam looked satisfied and turned to leave.

Karie growled at the blonde in front of her and jumped to her feet.

She screamed and charged at Sam, her hands out in front of her ready to choke the life out of her assailant once she reached her. Sam turned around in time to see Karie's body being tackled into the ground by another brunette girl.

"Carly!" Sam ran over to help the girl off of Karie's now unconscious body.

"Hey."

"Did you just tackle Karie Kaster?!"

"Yeah. I'm pretty sure I did."

"Right on!" They both exchanged a strong high five before laughing. The laughing soon stopped and was replaced by an awkward silence.

"I'm sorry about the whole... you know. Shane thing." Carly said after pulling back.

"Yeah... me too. I guess it took a third girl to go after our man before we realized we shouldn't be fighting."

"Good thing it was Karie Kaster... I hate her, and couldn't stand it if she got Shane!"

"Me neither!"

"How about we just let things happen? If Shane chooses you then he chooses you... I'll be happy for you both." Carly suggested.

"We already tried that, remember? But... I-.... I really have to confess something." Carly's attention stiffened."After a while, I really didn't like Shane as much as I did when I first saw him."

Carly looked surprised."Why was that?"

"Because I realized that he's too much like Freddie. He likes too many things that Freddie's into, and he'll be talking about geek stuff all day. I already have a geek to do that for me, and I don't need another one."

"Are you- are you sure?" Carly asked, suspension arising that this was just a plan to get Shane.

"Yeah, he's all yours." Sam said simply. Carly saw that her friend was smiling, and realized she did mean everything she said. Soon relief washed over her.

"So... are we friends again?"

"No duh!" They both smiled before leaning in for a long hug.

When they pulled away silence engulfed the conversation again as they looked down to the lifeless body at their feet.

"Run for it?"

"Yup."

Carly led the way out of the main hallway and around the corner, Sam following close on her heels.

"What happened to Shane after the fight? I didn't see him after the deans rounded everyone up." Sam asked, her voice trailing behind Carly.

"I don't know, but I couldn't find Freddie either." she said turning her head. They came to a slow walk once they were a good distance away from the crime scene.

"Lucky for those two I guess... Oh well. Looks like I'll be working at Chili My Bowl for the next two days!" Carly looked at Sam and saw that she was smiling.

"Why _are_ you so happy working at that place? I thought you said you couldn't stand it?"

"Well... They got a new manager there and he doesn't make me clean the men's bathroom, he lets me have breaks every hour, and he's never there whenever a costumer is ever mean to me so I can yell back at them without getting in trouble! How cool is that?" Sam's voice expressed a lot more excitement then what Carly was used to seeing in her friend when they talked about work. She glanced at Sam and saw that she was still smiling.

This made her giggle before she turned her head back around. Sam noticed Carly's reaction and started to feverishly tap on her shoulder.

"What??" she asked, her hands turning over in the air in confusion.

This just made Carly laugh even more, as she picked up her pace when she heard the minute bell ring.

"CARLY!! Tell me what's so funny!!!" Sam hurried up to catch up to her friend.

_I kissed Shane... I Kissed Shane.... I. KISSED. SHANE...._

What bothered him more than the questions that wouldn't leave him alone, was that Shane had told him that

he didn't mean to kiss him, that he was just vulnerable, that Freddie really didn't want to kiss him at all...

Was it really because Freddie was vulnerable? Was it really because he was scared of losing Shane for the second time now? That it was just instinct acting on it's own accord that made him kiss him, made him _want_ to kiss him?

Freddie's mind was divided between two different mind sets, both racing each other to get to the finish line first: a tortoise and a hare.

The hare was going 50 miles per hour, hitting his brain with a lot of questions that asked him everything and anything that popped up in his head, always wanting to know why, how, when, why, who, _why, why, why._

The tortoise on the other hand was slow paced, with a speed of barely half a mile per hour. It would ask him a question every so often, leaving him to wonder about it before it asked him another one.

Each track was trying to figure everything out through their own methods, both wanting to get to the finish line where everything would be solved.

He knew that the tortoise would have been a better choice, but he couldn't slow down. His mind wouldn't let him rest, and wouldn't keep asking how? Why? _why_?? He wanted to ask so many questions, he wanted answers to everything, he wanted...he wanted...

He wanted Shane to answer them. He wanted him to answer them all, even if it was him who started his questions in the first place.

Freddie was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice Carly and Sam enter the classroom. English I Honors was their last class of the day and they were all in it.

Sam spotted Freddie and walked over to his desk. "Sup Fredward."

Freddie continued to stare at a spot across the room, not noticing Sam.

Sam looked from Freddie to the spot he was looking at and started to wave her hands in front of him.

"Freddie! Fred-Man! Hey! You there?"

Carly arrived beside Sam and looked confusingly at Sam.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

She shrugged as she gestured towards Freddie.

"What's wrong with Freddie?" she finally asked turning towards Carly.

"I don't know. He hasn't been acting like himself all day.... Well actually, now that I think about it, he hasn't been acting like himself ever since we met Shane..." Carly was looking up to the ceiling as if it had the answer.

"Freddie! FREDDIE!! Ugh... that's it!" Sam opened up her palm and slapped Freddie across the face as hard as she could.

Freddie responded by jumping up. He didn't yell till after the effect of the slap sunk in.

"OWWW!! What was that for??" He demanded, now looking up at his two standing friends.

"What's wrong with you elephant butt?" Sam asked.

"What's with you and elephants today?"

Sam turned to her friend, responding with a shrug and a `I don't know' gesture before turning back to Freddie.

"So... what's making you stare at that wall so much that you don't notice us? Did you like get x-ray vision or something and now you're looking into the Girls' locker room?"

Freddie immediately averted his gaze away from his friends. Sam had no idea how much that sentence affected Freddie, or the thoughts that it brought up again.


	9. Chapter 9

Freddie was walking down the hallways after school. He slipped away from Sam and Carly's questions by asking to use the bathroom before school ended. He had taken his bag with him and was heading towards the AV club, despite his disposition not to go, when he heard Karie call his name.

"Hey Freddie!!"

Freddie turned around. "Hi."

"Watcha doing right now?" Freddie hesitated on answering the question. He didn't know whether or not it was a smart idea to give her information on where he was going.

He decided that maybe it wouldn't be a big deal and said," The AV club."

He immediately regret the decision when he saw the smile on her face.

"Really?? Can I come!" Before he could say no she grabbed his arm and was leading him down the hallway.

_Wait... How does she know where it is?_

The AV club's classroom was around the corner and somehow Karie already knew where to go.

They got to the classroom and Freddie found Shane sitting at a desk, working on something. Freddie was first to go through the door and when he saw Shane, he looked happy to see him. But soon, that happiness faded when Karie walked in.

"Shane!! What a surprise! You're in the AV club too?" Shane wondered why her surprise sounded fake to him.

_Wait, what? Why is Karie here? _

Shane took a second glance at the two.

_And WHY is she hanging off his arm again??_

"Uh... hi Karie. What are you doing here?" Shane gave Freddie a questioning look but all he got was Freddie looking away.

"Well, I ran into Freddie and he said he was going to the AV club. I asked if I could come and he said yes!" She almost let out a half squeal, but she held it in.

Shane had a disbelieving look plastered on his face. He was so concentrated on figuring out why in the world Freddie would let a girl like Karie into their club that he didn't see the annoyance in Freddie's face.

"Oh, wow! Is this what you guys have been working on?" Karie let go of Freddie's arm to run over to Shane, so she could get a closer view of what looked like a half built machine.

" I saw iCarly when they used your magnet thing last week. It was soooo amazing!! I mean, like did you see all those colors!! That was so cool, but I never got the whole mayonnaise and vinegar part though..."

"It was just suppose to be funny..." Shane muttered as he continued to work on the machine. He didn't feel like giving Karie his full attention.

"Are you guys going to put this on iCarly this week?" She asked turning around to face Freddie.

He hesitated, looking from Karie to Shane before he walked over to join the two at their machine.

"This probably won't be done in time for the show this week."

"Aww... what a bummer."

Shane couldn't hear the conversation. It was all white noise to him as his head was somewhere else while his hands mindlessly worked on their project.

Why, of all people, did Freddie let Karie Kaster into their club? Wasn't she fighting with Carly and Sam earlier? And all of a sudden they're friends?

Suddenly something brought Shane back to the classroom. It was Freddie laughing.

Karie said something before leaving the room.

_Why is he laughing?? Why is he...._

Then it occurred to him.

"Are you two going out?"

* * *

"Shane's face was so funny in the background! He was laughing like, 'why am I here?' or something!" Freddie had seen the recorded show after getting Shane to the hospital. He remembered Shane's face and it made him laugh.

"I have to use the lady's room. I will be right back! Don't you two do anything without me! Kay?" Karie's voice sang before she left the room.

"Are you two going out?" Freddie turned around.

"W-What?" came Freddie's voice, shaking a little.

"Are. You. Two. Going. Out?" Shane stated more clearly this time.

It took Freddie a while to answer the question. He didn't know why it was hard to answer. He wanted to say no on the technicality that he and Karie haven't even asked each other out at all yet. He wanted to say no, not just because he found Karie annoying or that he knew that Karie was just acting when she said she didn't know about the AV club. It was because of how Shane looked at him when he said it. He knew that if he said no, that it would comfort Shane, it would give him back his happy friend, but he didn't want that. He remembered how Shane told him that he didn't mean to kiss him, that it wasn't him who did it, that it was just a moment thing.

But looking back he couldn't see himself not wanting to kiss him or see himself regretting the action at all.

"Freddie?"

Some how, some way, Freddie didn't recognize his body. His mind, his thoughts, everything. So when he said the next words he wondered who was that stranger and why did he say yes?

* * *

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